Description:

CELL & DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY DEPARTMENT FACULTY CANDIDATE SEMINAR:

"Extracellular Vesicle-mediated Regulation of Metabolism"

Clair Crewe, PhD

Assistant Instructor

Touchstone Diabetes Center, Department of Internal Medicine

UT Southwestern Medical Center

Join Us

Monday, November 30, 2020

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM

Zoom Link:  https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/94819676445

Meeting ID: 948 1967 6445

Password: available upon request

Dial-in: +1 312 626 6799

Abstract:

Adipose tissue dysfunction is at the forefront of metabolic disturbances in obesity and type 2 diabetes. In the context of obesity, hypertrophied adipocytes become dysfunctional, losing their beneficial endocrine functions and precipitating tissue inflammation and fibrosis. It is this unhealthy expansion of the adipose tissue that initiates systemic lipotoxicity and insulin resistance and, by proxy, promotes the development of comorbid conditions associated with obesity, such as cardiovascular disease. Proper function of adipose tissue is maintained by cross-talk between resident tissue cells including adipocytes, endothelial cells, immune cells and fibroblasts, a process that is disrupted in the obese condition. Our recently published work describes the finding that cells in adipose tissue exchange extracellular vesicles (EV) that are rich in signaling proteins, lipids, and miRNAs. Furthermore, adipocyte-specific EVs enter circulation and have profound signaling effects on cells in other organs. The focus of my work is to elucidate the nature and metabolic consequences of EV signaling pathways within adipose tissue and from adipose tissue to other organ systems. This work holds the promise of identifying and targeting novel pathways that support healthy or maladaptive metabolic changes in obesity.

Host: CDB Faculty Search Committee

 
 
Click here to subscribe to the department seminar series or for more information please contact Vanessa Gonzalez, vanessa.g@northwestern.edu